Council Meeting Wrap-Up: Dec. 20, 2023
Greetings! Today marks the first in what will be a regular series with my thoughts on the most recent Hoboken City Council meetings. My goal first and foremost is to NOT to bore you to tears with dense technobabble… but rather to provide you with personal insights into what went on during our meetings in an understandable way. I’ll try to keep these as brief and as simple as possible, focusing on only the most important discussions and decisions so you can understand why these are important and how you will be impacted.
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Wednesday evening’s council meeting was doomed to go long from the moment we sat down, sure there was a lot on the agenda, but it seemed there were only a couple of controversial topics. Boy was I wrong, yesterday was a marathon. Generally, our rules call for meetings to end by midnight, and we did… barely, with Council President Emily Jabbour gaveling the session closed at 11:55 PM. But we got a lot of good work done and will be going into 2024 with new possibilities for an arts center downtown and (most significantly) a plan to completely overhaul and dramatically improve our Housing Authority.
Councilman DeFusco’s Last Day
First and foremost, the meeting kicked off acknowledging an end to an era as 1st Ward Councilman Mike DeFusco chose to not to seek re-election this past November after eight years. In his own words, the Councilman is stepping down to take a break from public office and be a “normal person again.” Having known Mike for two years now, I am not sure he ever was a “normal person,” but we’ll see what version of him emerges after a couple of months without constant public scrutiny.
During this session, each councilperson took a few moments to share earnest and thoughtful comments on their experience with Mike. For me, I’ve always appreciated his passion, his willingness to wear his heart on his sleeve, and his tenacity. Things I hope to emulate as I continue my time on the Council. Best wishes Councilman, while I’m excited to no longer be the “new guy” on the Council, I am sad to see you go… and I know we’ll see you again on the political stage before long
Church Square Park
The first actual item on the agenda was a Public Hearing on the Church Square Park redesign. The team from Arterial Design unveiled a final vision for the park which was the culmination of three public meetings and significant public input. I thought the result was a beautiful vision for the park, rooted in its history, yet designed for the future. The vision calls for the restoration of the central oval for passive recreation, while pushing active areas (like playgrounds) to the perimeter. Hoboken Girl has a good summary here. But while I loved the design, not everyone in the room did.
Prior to the meeting, the biggest pushback related to the proposed conversion of the basketball courts to multi-use along with pickleball (via the power of painted lines). I agree this was a mistake, these courts were dedicated to Gary White (a legend in Hoboken rec basketball) and should remain basketball only. The good news is the feedback was received loud and clear and the plans were updated. No more pickleball on these courts.
However, there were more complaints – ranging from claims the dog park was kept in its location out of spite towards Our Lady of Grace’s pastor to threats that all the trees would be cut down. Look, is the design perfect? No. For example, I think maybe we can move the dog park… and maybe the location of the new bathroom isn’t great, but the overall vision won’t lead to the apocalypse and the trees will be saved. Let’s not let the perfect be the enemy of the great here. Councilwoman Fisher and I agreed on this one, which perhaps IS a sign of the apocalypse, but I think it’s a sign that these park enhancements are a win for Hoboken.
Related to this hearing, later in the evening we voted on a resolution awarding a contract to Arterial ($82,000) to begin phase one of the project which will begin the process of moving the toddler playground to its new location. The resolution passed 7-2.
Hoboken Housing Authority Redevelopment (Passed)
Skipping ahead to later in the evening the council voted unanimously (9-0) to approve the Redevelopment Plan which will transform our Housing Authority complexes. Having spent a lot of time in the HHA these past two years, I must say this is the most significant vote I have been a part of. Redevelopment of the HHA is long overdue and its residents deserve it.
When completed, nearly every building on the HHA campuses will be replaced with modern structures that better integrate the HHA with the rest of Hoboken, improve flood mitigation, and lead to an overall better quality of life for its residents.
In his remarks, Councilman Ramos was brought to tears when thinking about the long road leading to this moment. Over his 25 years of public service, he’d tried again and again to improve these facilities only to be met with obstacles and resistance. At times he felt like a failure to his friends, to the community he grew up in. That weighs heavy on a person.
I expressed my gratitude and guilt. Guilt because so much of the blood, sweat, and tears that led us to this initial success was born by those who came before me, allowing me – perhaps undeservedly - to help take that baton across this finish line. However, I also felt gratitude because I know those who passed that baton did so with grace, knowing that their work was not in vain, and so I’m grateful for this opportunity to see that hard work through to the end. But to be clear, this is not the end. There are many decisions left to be made and many fights to be fought, but my commitment to the HHA Board, its management, and (most importantly) its residents is to do what I can to see this project through to completion.
Fabian Arts District (Passed)
Former home to the Fabian Theater and current home to CVS (though in a different location) the Fabian Arts District Redevelopment plan came up for a vote. Again, Hoboken Girl did an excellent job summarizing the plan here. When the project is completed, residents will finally be able to directly access Hudson Place from Washington Street, we’ll have enhanced services for our unhoused, and we’ll have an opportunity for an arts center.
Critics of the plan worried about the potential for further upzoning of Washington Street (that is, taller and taller buildings – think Newport) and criticized it for only including only the bare minimum 10% affordable housing required by law. All valid concerns, however, when weighed against the massive benefits this plan will bring to downtown and the Hoboken community at large, for me voting yes was a no brainer. My colleagues agreed 9-0.
Corner Upzoning (Removed)
Another area of significant controversy was the proposal for “corner upzoning” in certain areas of the city. Again, think taller and taller building (but this time not as tall as Newport). If passed, building owners in certain parts of Hoboken would have been able to add more height to their buildings, including taller ground floors which is attractive to retail. Generally, the argument is that in some areas, due to flood regulations, ground floors can no longer be residential and so those ground floors are being converted into fancy storage for fancy condo owners. With corner upzoning, building owners (aka developers) would be able to put high ceiling retail on the ground floor (which, again is super desirable) while adding that lost residential floor onto the top, adding building height.
Those against the plan cited the dangers of adding yet more incentives that a minority of (unscrupulous) building owners use to displace tenants, especially in rent-controlled units. Frankly, the opposition to this plan was fierce and I found it persuasive – I would have liked to have seen more tenant protections included in the language. However, ultimately there was no vote as it was removed by the sponsor given Hoboken’s Planning Board previously found it inconsistent with Hoboken’s Master Plan.
Fun Other Things
Council Grades? Regular meeting attendee Manny Rivera Soler handed out grades to both the Council and Council President Jabbour. Mr. Rivera gave us a B+ (I’ll take it), but outrageously he gave Council President Jabbour the same grade! I disagree. She gets an A in my book, mostly for having to deal with this band of nine misfits every two weeks.
Best Line of the Evening. This one goes to Councilwoman Fisher who said “What? Can you say that one more time please?” After I commented that I agreed with her on her position regarding Church Square Park.
Best Moment. Approving the HHA Redevelopment Plan.
Best Dressed. Mike DeFusco
Biggest Lie. Councilman Russo for saying he’ll once again be the best-looking man on the council with DeFusco’s departure. I’m not saying it’ll be me… but… Correction… It turns out CM Russo said he would be the best looking Michael… which I actually agree with. So, I guess this one goes to me for telling Rod (the sound guy) this meeting would be short.
Best Performance. Jimmy Farina for bringing us cupcakes and chocolate in hour three of the meeting.
